Book Review. Gordon states that "what these books sacrifice in flamboyance of style and excess of measure permitted to the fictional representations is more than compensated for by the chilling realization that this 'game' is no game or, even worse, to the extent that it is, all or us, the readers included, are the insignificant counters in the high stakes for which the players contest." These books mesh well together and have the common theme of spies and counterspies.